Dyslexia is a condition in which a person is not able to correctly process written words from the eyes to the brain. This learning disorder prevents the person from fully and accurately recognizing and decoding words. Those affected have difficulty comprehending reading materials and spelling correctly. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) classifies dyslexia as a “reading disorder.”

People with dyslexia do not have intelligence deficits or visual impairment. Instead, a neurological disorder causes their brain to interpret information differently from most people without the condition. This impairs the ability to read and write and may in some cases lead to speech and language difficulties. Because people with dyslexia have problems reading and writing, they require special learning techniques in order to accumulate knowledge, develop their vocabulary and expand their learning. Some individuals also have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), creating a greater challenge for overcoming their dyslexia.

Dyslexia is one of the most common learning disorders. It is estimated to affect between 4 and 15 percent of the population, according to the National Center for Learning Disabilities. In addition, between 70 and 80 percent of children who receive special education services have reading deficits of some type, according to the International Dyslexia Association. This disorder affects males and females equally and it affects all ethnic and socio-economic groups in equal proportions.

People with severe dyslexia may never be accomplished readers, but those with milder forms of the disorder may eventually read at normal levels for their age. 

Dyslexia is a neurological problem that results from improper functioning of the brain in terms of language. Reading requires the eyes and brain to work together in complex ways. The eyes must focus on the printed word while the brain controls eye movements across the page. In addition, the brain must understand how the words are put together and how the letters sound. In processing words, the brain builds images and ideas, compares new ideas to what is already known, and stores these ideas in the memory.

A malfunction in any part of the brain’s centers of vision, language or memory – or in the nerve cells that connect these centers – can result in dyslexia. People with dyslexia have brains that are wired differently from most people. Imaging tests show that when people with dyslexia read, different parts of the brain are active than in people who do not have dyslexia.